Europe 2010: DAX Up 17%; Athens Index Down 35%

Arthi Gupta
31 Dec, 2010
New York City

European indexes diverged in 2010. Germany led the region with a gain of 17% and Greece led the decliners with a loss of 35%. UK index rose 9% but the index in France declined 3.4%. Russia and Turkey rose more than 22%.

[R]4:00 PM Frankfurt – European indexes diverged in 2010. Germany led the region with a gain of 17% and Greece led the decliners with a loss of 35%. UK index rose 9% but the index in France declined 3.4%. Russia and Turkey rose more than 22%.[/R]

European markets showed a mixed performance in 2010 as Germany led the region with a rise of 16%.

CAC 40 index in Paris fell 3.4% and the FTSE 100 index in London increased 9%. The IBEX 35 index in Madrid declined 17% and FTSE MIB index in Milan dropped 13%. Dollar weighted RTS index in Moscow rose 22% and Turkey benchmark index gained 25%.

The Athens based ASE index dropped 35% and led the region’s decliners.

Auto sector led the sector indexes with a rise of 44% after the investors bet on cyclical sector ahead of economic recovery and the rise in auto sales in China lifted BMW AG by 85% in 2010.

Oil and gas sector was the weakest performer in the region with a rise of less than 1% and BP Plc dropped more than 22%.

World markets diverged in 2010 with emerging market leading and most developed market trailing. Markets in Turkey, Russia and India led the world with more than 15% rise. Jakarta benchmark index in Indonesia led Asian indexes with a rise of 46.1% followed by 38% increase in Philippines.

Indexes in China, Australia and Japan closed lower.

Commodities rose the most and cotton soared 89% and silver surged 81%. U.S. Treasury bonds gained 5.5% after losing 3.7% in 2009 according a index tracked by Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Asian markets traded mixed and European markets declined on the last trading session of 2010.

Estonia becomes the first former Soviet republic to join the euro on the New Year day, putting a temporary cap on the currency bloc’s expansion as sovereign debt crisis spreads through Europe.

The country located on the Eastern edge of Russia will at midnight tonight become the 17th country to switch over to the euro currency. The Baltic state has one of the lowest public spending deficits in Europe at 1.7% of output.

Estonia, a one-time satellite of the Soviet Union and a country of 1.3 million people, received the endorsement of the European Commission to join the euro-zone. Estonia''s general government deficit fell to 1.7% of GDP, below the 3% EU threshold, in 2009 and the gross debt level stood at 7.2% of GDP.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet in September had said, ""The forthcoming enlargement of the euro area to include Estonia demonstrates that the euro area is not a ''closed shop.''""

Trichet said January 1 will become ""a landmark in the history of Estonia, reflecting the long and challenging process of economic and monetary integration that has enabled Estonia to join the euro area.""

In Paris CAC 40 Index declined 45.98 or 1.19% to close at 3,804.78. For the week, the CAC 40 Index slumped 2.45% and for the year fell 3.34%.

The German market is closed for the day.

German Exports Rise

German exports climbed 21.5% annually to €244.9 billion during the third quarter, the Federal Statistics Office said on Thursday. A year earlier, exports totaled €201.6 billion.

Greek Retail Sales Decline

Greek retail sales, excluding trade in automotive fuels dropped 10.3% annually in real terms in October, following an 11.6% decline in September, according to data from the Hellenic Statistics Authority. This marks the seventh consecutive month of decline since March.

Automotive fuel sales recorded a 2.4% annual decline in October compared to the 8.8% fall in September.

Estonia''s Industrial Production, Retail Sales Up

Estonia''s working-day adjusted industrial production rose 35.1% on an annual basis in November, latest report from Statistics Estonia showed.

Energy production surged 42.3%, mining output climbed 7.9% and manufacturing production rose 36.1% in November.

Estonia''s retail sales of goods increased 5% at constant prices in November from the prior year, as against the 1% increase in October, Statistics Estonia reported on Friday. Retail sales grew for the third month in succession.

Czech M2 Money Supply Slackens

Czech M2 money supply increased 3.6% in November from the previous year, compared to October’s 4.4% increase, data from the Czech National Bank showed today. A year ago, the increase was 4.1%.

Gainers & Losers

AXA S.A. fell 1.07% to €12.45 after the insurer said it would buy 80% of Belarus''s B&B Insurance as part of its plans to expand in Central and Eastern Europe.

Porsche Automobil Holding SE declined 1.06% to €59.66 after the German car manufacturer said a U.S. district court dismissed claims arising out of the acquisition of and disclosures regarding Volkswagen ordinary shares in 2008.

In these cases, a total of 39 plaintiffs asserted claims against Porsche SE under the U.S. securities laws and common law arising out of Porsche SE''s acquisition of and disclosures regarding Volkswagen ordinary shares. Plaintiffs had alleged total damages of more than $2 billion.

Beko Holding AG gained 1.09% to €2.78 after the Austria-based holding company engaged in provision of technology services said it intended to split off 3,008,336 shares of All for One Midmarket AG to the newly-established company CROSS Informatik GmbH.

Vinci S.A. edged lower 1.07% to €40.68 after the French contractor said it signed a 55-year concession contract for the new Nantes regional airport, involving an investment of €450 million.